


Lily and June

by melonbutterfly



Series: Domesticity [3]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff, M/M, Mpreg, hermaphrodite!Loki, labor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-05-12
Updated: 2013-05-12
Packaged: 2017-12-11 15:55:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/800481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melonbutterfly/pseuds/melonbutterfly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>They had prepared for this very thoroughly – which should have been the first indication that things wouldn't go as planned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lily and June

"Hm," Loki makes, putting a hand on his belly. There is nothing to it; by this point it is very clear to him that these are not false contractions: he is in labor. The situation is… less than ideal. "Thor."

His brother pauses from where he is prowling the room, clad in his armor and battle-ready with Mjölnir in his hand. He keeps trying to peer out of the window in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the battle, despite the fact that the whole point of this exercise was to bring Loki far away from anywhere he could end up hurt. In general Loki is not at all fond of being treated like a fragile if precious burden, but he can hardly argue that that is what he is at the moment. Not with the fragile and precious burden he is carrying. "Brother? What is it, have you need of anything?"

Ah, well. "We might need to vacate this hotel." Too bad, the suite JARVIS booked for them last minute is quite comfortable and luxurious. Nothing less but the best for Loki, even – or perhaps especially – in a crisis. Loki cannot say he at all minds Tony’s inclination to shower him in luxury.

Thor frowns. "Why? Is this room not to your tastes?"

"It is quite nice," Loki grants, because it is. "However, I am in labor and for that, it is not the ideal environment, is it not?"

It is not a bad environment either – there is running water, clean towels, warmth and no draft – but Loki has had nine months to learn about Midgard and its hospitals, its ideas and attitudes about birth. More importantly, he has had that long to learn Tony's ideas and feelings, and he does agree with them to a point, especially in light of the fact that magic is not viable an option here. Also, considering that he is carrying twins, a hospital really would be a safer environment for the birth for all involved.

Except Thor seems to be not quite following his train of thought; he is staring at Loki, eyes bulging out as he goes pale. "Labor?"

Like many warriors, Thor has always had a healthy respect bordering on irrational fear of primarily female body functions, such as pregnancy and birth. Personally, Loki has always found this amusing even before he gained personal experience in either; that is why he has chosen to tell Thor the way he did. It is quite funny to see Thor fumble a spare headset out of his pocket and give it too Loki, speechless and quite evidently unable to tell the team himself. And tell them they must; it does not bear thinking about keeping this from them. They are professional enough not to be distracted by the news, but especially and most of all Tony needs to know.

Loki takes the headset quite triumphantly – they had refused to give him one earlier and there had not been the time to insist, though suffice to say there will be words about this later; there is a fine line between being protective and being patronizing and Loki will not tolerate the latter – and puts it in his ear, pressing the tiny button that will activate it so it will transmit instead of merely receive. "Hello?"

"Hey Loki," Tony says, a little out of breath. "What happened, did you knock Thor out?" Then he gives some instructions to Natasha, who appears to be temporarily using him for transport. In the background, there is similar chatter from the rest of the team.

Loki waits until they are done discussing strategy to say, "In a manner of speaking, I suppose." Indeed, Thor is still staring at him, honest fear on his face as he likely pictures a scenario in which he has to assist Loki during the birthing. If it would not potentially endanger the children, Loki would honestly consider it just to cherish the panic on his brother’s face. "I am in labor."

Abruptly, all the comms go silent for just a second. Then Tony squeaks "What?" at the same time as Steve says, "That is not funny," a trace of panic in his voice. Natasha curses and Clint chokes back a hysterical giggle.

"Active labor," Loki clarifies. "I have been for about an hour." Or at least, that was when he was finally calm enough to really pay attention. He had noticed the contractions before, of course, but in the stress of having to vacate the tower and find a safe place to stay had dismissed them as false. Now they are coming very rapidly and last almost a minute; Loki knows from personal experience that the birth is not far off. "So I need to go to the hospital."

"The hospital is on the other side of the city!" Tony says, voice a little high.

Loki frowns. "Well, that was bad planning."

"My apologies," JARVIS says, voice calm but apologetic. "Your current location was the only hotel in the acceptable range that had a suite available on such short notice, and Mr. Stark insisted on a suite."

"So now it's my fault?" Tony squeaks.

Impatiently, Loki means to tell Tony to focus but a contraction interrupts him before he can. They are painful if not that bad yet, but Loki still lets a tiny noise of pain escape; it proves to be much more effective than any chiding remark he could have uttered. Thor is immediately there, big hand in the small of Loki's back right where the pain resides, and over the comm Tony asks worriedly how he is while Steve instructs JARVIS to find the closest hospital.

"I need a hospital with a transitional care unit," Loki says, voice a little strained, "that has cots that allow co-bedding." He is not going to let them keep the children away from him, or put them in separate beds.

"Would you like for me to request an ambulance for you?" JARVIS asks politely.

Loki would prefer to walk if the hospital is close enough but when he says as much he is met by a chorus of disagreement. It annoys him to have his choices curtailed like that; he is the one pregnant and in labor, he will make the decisions, but before an argument can brand up JARVIS informs him that the closest hospital meeting his criteria is not within walking distance anyway, effectively putting an end to that discussion. 

"Try to get Miller to the hospital as well," Tony instructs, calm for just a moment before he curses. Miller is the doctor they had spoken to and that has accompanied Loki throughout the pregnancy; Loki certainly trusts her more than doctors at a hospital that do not know to expect him, nor what to do with him omce he gets there.

"And now I really need my bag," Loki says after JARVIS has informed them that the ambulance is on the way and the hospital knows to expect someone in labor, if not that said someone is male. Not that it will make much of a difference; Loki is equipped to give birth like any other female. However, he understands that sometimes silence is the better part of valor here on Midgard where his pregnancy is concerned.

"Yes, I get it, I fucked up," Tony says tightly. He is the one who had insisted on Loki not having the time to get anything, and admittedly, the tower had been under attack, so his haste was not unfounded. Still, now here Loki is, in labor and without anything he needs, much less the security of knowing that the hospital will be prepared for him.

"Watch out!" Clint suddenly bellows and the next minute is wrought with tension as Loki balls his hands into fists and listens to curses and more warnings, short orders. The others are in the middle of battle, he reminds himself, they do not have the time for this.

"I will be alright," he says tightly once the threat does not seem to be immediate anymore, another contraction stealing his breath. "I have given birth before."

"Though never without magic to aid you before," Thor throws in, earning himself a furious glare from Loki.

"Shut up, Thor," he hisses, honestly angry at his brother for the insensitivity. Tony curses in his ear, worried and angry probably at himself. This is getting completely out of hand; they had planned this so thoroughly, spoken to the hospital, the doctor, midwife and nurses they had hand-picked countless times, made plans and contingency plans. All for nothing now, all because of an ill-timed attack by Dr. Doom (and it is Doom that is ill-timed, not the labor; if his babies are ready then they are ready and their timing is impeccable, and if Steve or anyone will say another word about this being a less than ideal situation Loki will make them regret it).

A knock on the door catches both their attention; Loki looks up and Thor, after glancing at Loki to make sure he will not collapse from his seated position on the bed in the minute it will take for him to get to the door, goes to open it. An employee in hotel uniform is standing there, informing him that the ambulance has arrived.

"Should I carry you, brother?" Thor offers, not noticing the employees flabbergasted expression either at his identity or the situation; possibly both.

Loki rolls his eyes and glares. "No."

The employee boggles; as long as Loki does not speak he could be mistaken for a woman, at least if one has grown up on a world so limited that only women ever get pregnant. Loki raises his eyebrow at the boy who flushes and lowers his gaze, still incredulous but making an honest attempt at hiding it as Thor walks over and holds out his arm to Loki. With an annoyed sigh, Loki takes the offer; there is pride and there is being in labor, and the two do scarcely meet.

"What's happening, Loki?" Tony asks, voice a little strained.

Loki breathes deeply through another contraction, wobbling a little, then starts to walk, the exercise abating the pain somewhat. "The ambulance is here." The walk through the hotel is annoying; people who see them frown in confusion because Loki is too tall, his shoulders too broad, his face too angular for a woman still despite the softening effect the pregnancy has had, and yet his body shows clearly that he is pregnant. Loki cannot stride by as quickly as he wants to either, the pain slowing him down even more than his belly does already. His brother is a welcome presence at his side, tall, imposing and intimidating in his battle armor as he supports Loki. The EMTs are waiting when they exit the elevator, a wheelchair between them. They too seem startled as they see Loki but professionalism takes over quickly as they help him into the wheelchair. Loki keeps silent as they push him towards the waiting ambulance and help him inside. Only once he is settled on the gurney does he answer their questions: he is thirty-seven weeks and three days pregnant, in active labor, and yes he knows for sure, he has given birth before. The two EMTs pause at that, exchanging glances.

"So, uh, Asgardian, huh?" one of them says.

"Æsir," Loki corrects, "and yes." Well, no, but he is not going to get into that at the moment; all they want is for him to confirm that being pregnant and male is normal. One thing he has learned about Midgardians is that they are willing to accept a lot from him and Thor if they behave as if it were normal; he and his brother have had their fair share of amusement over that.

True to form, the EMTs seem relieved and proceed as normal, checking Loki over, radioing the hospital.

"Your contractions are very close to each other," one of them says, "you are close to birth."

"Yes," Loki agrees.

"How close?" Tony asks in his ear. He and the rest of the team have kept quiet while Loki got into the ambulance and was checked over, apart from talking among each other, short warnings and battle strategy.

"Maybe an hour," Loki replies, one hand on his hardened belly. "How is the battle going?"

The EMTs look startled until Loki gestures towards his ear, inside which the tiny button connecting him to the team resides. "Not as fast as I would like," Tony grinds out, sounding really pissed off now. He wanted to be there for the birth, _Loki_ wanted for him to be there.

"Oh," one of the EMTs makes. "The father-?"

"In battle," Loki replies. They had kept it quiet for Loki's safety for this long – a minor miracle that they were successful – but there is no point in trying to keep it there for any longer.

It earns him a sympathetic glance from the EMT. "When I gave birth," she says, "my husband was stuck in traffic. That's a bit less dramatic than this but still, he couldn't be there."

"My forth child, my wife was not there either," Loki tells her. "I had been hoping to avoid a repeat performance." Angrboða had been out hunting with Jörmungandr; only Hel had been there. Granted, Fenrir had not given Loki much warning and the swiftness of the birth had made for little complications, but it had been an attritional experience especially for Hel, who had been far too young to deal with the responsibility.

"I'll try to be there," Tony promises, sounding stressed and angry and a number of other things.

"We can't spare Tony," Steve says apologetically, "I'm really sorry. It's hard enough as it is."

"But what if we exchange him for Thor?" Natasha suggests. "It's not like these things require much finesse."

So this is a quantity over quality sort of attack. Doom seems incapable of managing both at the same time. "I would appreciate that," Loki says, and his voice possibly wobbles a little, and possibly it is not by design. He does not want to do this alone and he appreciates that they never even consider the possibility, but he would prefer Tony over anyone else. Sure, Thor would be there for him and not be completely useless, but in the end his brother would be of little help; Loki remembers well the way Thor's voice goes high and his knees weak as soon as birth becomes imminent, having been around enough people in labor with him over the years. With Loki being the one to give birth and in pain Thor might even faint, especially considering that there are two children waiting to be born

As if on a cue, Loki's water breaks and instead of trickling out at a relatively moderate pace, from one moment to the next his pants and the gurney are flooded. There are some startled noises which spark worried questions over the comm system. "My wa- ha!" Loki takes a couple of deep breaths, helping him through the pain. "My water broke," he gasps once he can speak again.

"We will be there soon," the EMT soothes. "Five minutes. They're prepping the surgery now."

"Okay," Steve says, suddenly determined. "This is what we're going to do. Tony's going to head to the hospital now and as soon as he's with you, Thor's going to leave."

"That leaves you one man down, and you have told me you cannot afford this," Loki pants. "Also, what surgery?"

"We can deal for half an hour," Steve says firmly. "Besides, Tony's already on the way anyway."

He didn't even argue? "Tony?"

"ETA fifteen minutes," Tony says. "How are you doing?"

"For the cesarean," the EMT replies at the same time.

"What cesarean?" His brother's hand is suddenly on his shoulder, keeping him from sitting up. "I am not having a cesarean."

The EMTs exchange glances. "Well, the babies have to get out somehow, and for a vaginal birth you sort of need a vagina."

Loki rolls his eyes. "I am perfectly equipped for a natural birth, I assure you."

They exchange another glance, even more dubious than the first, but one of them dutifully radios it in.

"What is going on?" Tony demands as soon as he hears that Loki is not talking to the EMTs anymore. "Are they trying to give you a surgery?"

"No," Loki gasps, another contraction coming on. Then he startles because suddenly the ambulance's doors open and the gurney he's reclining on is pushed out, jostling him minimally. Outside the car a couple of people in white clothes wait; they take the IV bag from the EMTs and push Loki into the hospital, transferring him along with information in rapid lingo. Thor follows close, looking both intimidating and intimidated even as he keeps pace.

"Sir," one of the people around the gurney says. "No cesarean? Are you sure?"

"I'm Æsir!" Loki hisses, losing his patience. "Your Midgardian ideas of anatomy do not apply!"

The guy glances helplessly at the other people around. "Then how are we supposed to help you? We don't even know if pain medication works the same for you, or if this IV-"

"The IV is fine, I would have-" Loki grinds his teeth through another contraction. "-said if it were not. JARVIS, ETA on Miller?"

"Fifteen minutes," JARVIS replies swiftly while the guy looks confused and concerned as if worried that Loki is losing his mind, until someone points him to the comm in Loki's ear. He nods with understanding and then they all transfer Loki onto a bigger, more comfortable bed, lots of pillows at his back to support him.

"Birth is not that complicated," Loki hisses, fingers clawing into the mattress; the pain has moved to the stage where it does not leave, it merely wanes somewhat before growing stronger again. The contractions are still not as close as they could be, which means there is still time. "It will proceed the way nature has intended. What you need to do is make sure the babies are healthy." Because even if technically Loki could use his magic immediately after birth, he will be far too exhausted to perform anything complicated. He will if he has to, but it would have far-reaching consequences, leaving him knocked out for days, perhaps even longer than a week and he would rather not miss his youngest children's first week.

"My brother knows what he is doing," Thor says behind him.

"If you say so," the guy says, sounding not very sure of anything. Loki is glad he is not the one who will assist the birth; he just needs to make it through the next fifteen minutes and then Dr. Miller will be here, who knows everything she needs to.

"Five minutes," Tony says in his ear. "Where are you?"

"Where am I?" Loki repeats, then repeats the room number and floor he is told back to Tony just to make sure he receives the correct information. One of the nurses starts to help him out of his clothes, immediately assisted by Thor; together they undress him and then put him in a hospital gown that is open at the back and then a dressing gown for modesty or something. Loki shifts into the pillows at his back and spreads his legs, lets the doctors examine him. At their surprised exclamations at his anatomy he exchanges a long-suffering look with Thor before wincing as another contraction comes. By the time he blinks his eyes open again his blurred vision is awash with red and gold.

"Hey," Tony says, helmet under his arm, sweaty and out of breath, eyes a little crazed.

Loki smiles at him, then blinks when someone kisses him on the forehead, beard scratching – the wrong beard. "I will return momentarily, brother," Thor says, then strides away.

"Your cervix is not fully dilated yet," a woman between his legs says – and oh, Dr. Miller apparently has arrived, Loki didn't even notice. That can't possibly have been twenty minutes. Did he actually lose conscience? He does not remember anything of the kind. "About seven centimeters, so don't push yet. How are you feeling?"

"Ugh," Loki replies, waving at her feebly. "How are they?" He can hear them on the heart monitor but he is by far not as experienced with the machine as her.

"Their heart rate is a bit fast, but that's normal, they're under stress," Dr. Miller informs him. "They're both in the right position, though, and everything appears fine. How are you doing on pain?"

As a reply Loki can only curse and try to breathe through the pain as another contraction comes. One of his hands flails out and is caught by Tony, the armor''s glove cold and hard against his skin, creaking when Loki squeezes.

"Normally we would administer an epidural for a twin birth," Dr. Miller says, "but we cannot in good conscience do that under the circumstances."

"Which circumstances?" Tony asks as if they haven't discussed this before. More than once.

She throws him a dry look. "The circumstances where he is male and not human."

"Ah," Tony makes.

"Also, if you want to be there for the birth you should take that off, you'll be put in scrubs," she changes topics.

Immediately Tony obeys, stepping away from the bed and starting to dismantle the suit. Dr. Miller turns back to Loki. "As discussed, we can give you something to breathe through the pain, if needed."

Loki shakes his head. "Not yet." Later, most likely, but as of yet, it is not that bad. Or, well, it is bad, but nothing in comparison with the way it will feel when the actual births will commence. Plural, it will happen not once but twice, and that definitely is a first for Loki. Maybe he should have done this on Asgard after all, a more familiar environment and proceedings would be less stressful, especially with the security of magic to soothe everyone. Then again, he has never given birth on Asgard before either, so the point is moot.

Dr. Miller nods. "Alright. Would you like anything to eat or drink?"

Loki shrugs. He feels no need for either at the moment.

She nods again. "Do you think you can walk? Remaining active will help reduce the pain somewhat and ready you for the birth."

Yes, Loki remembers. He lets her help him up and then Tony is there, clad in loose, green scrubs on top of his black, skin-tight under-armor, helping Loki off the bed and slowly pace the room. It does help loosening his muscles a little but when the next contraction comes Loki still wants to set someone on fire.

Dr. Miller leaves them for a bit to discuss things with the hospital staff; they do not have the equipment they had expected, most notably not the new kind of ultrasound scan Tony invented just for the occasion of Loki's pregnancy. Because Tony was not satisfied with blurry ultrasound and bumpy 3D pictures; only the best for his partner and children.

"How are you doing?" Tony murmurs, hand warm on Loki's back. The other Loki is clutching tightly, half for support, half so he has something to squeeze when the pain grows stronger again.

Loki bites back several sharp remarks; yes, he's in pain, but Tony clearly is feeling delicate enough already about almost having missed it, about the fact that he is missing the battle. "Better now," he instead replies honestly, squeezing Tony's hand a little so his meaning will be entirely clear. Tony smiles, brushing his lips across Loki's cheek.

"I was really freaking worried," he confesses quietly.

"That you would miss it?" Loki asks, gasping and squeezing his eyes shut as another contraction comes.

"Yeah." Tony stills, holds him tightly. "You're doing good."

A second pair of hands supports Loki's other side, mindful of the IV drip. "How are you doing?"

Loki glances at Dr. Miller. "I'm close."

"Let's check," she says, helping him back to the bed and attaching the ultrasound to check on the babies' heartbeat. This machine is far less refined than Tony's, but there is nothing to be done about it now. "Nine centimeters," Dr. Miller reports. "We should get ready."

She and Tony help Loki back into position, pillows behind his back. Tony fusses a little, trying to make Loki as comfortable as possible. On Loki's other side a nurse is adjusting the breathing machine Loki already is familiar with; it provides him with a mild form of pain relief, should he need it.

"Here," Tony says, offering Loki a straw in a cup. Loki drinks and finds some sort of energy drink, tasting of chalky orange. He's not overly enthusiastic but it's not a surprise, he knew what he would get to drink; it might not taste great but it provides him with energy he will really need for the next hour or so.

"How do you feel?" Dr. Miller asks, right as another contraction hits so all Loki can do is scrunch his face up and try not to tell her to fuck off. He is in labor, how does she think he feels?

"Wonderful," Loki hisses through gritted teeth. Tony brushes the hair out of his forehead and does not grimace even though Loki's grip on his hand has to be painful.

"Just breathe," is her excellent advice, which this is quite a novel idea and not what Loki has been doing this whole time – his whole life, truly. "In a moment you can start to push. Don't feel shy about being loud or needing medication; the pain can be excruciating."

Brilliant.

Half an hour later Loki is yelling and Tony looks a little wild-eyed, trying to soothe him and clearly feeling way in over his head. The pain is bad; not the worst he has ever felt but labor most definitely goes in his top five, and this is already not his easiest labor.

"Very good," Dr. Miller is saying; she has been murmuring encouragement this whole time. "I can see the head, you're doing good."

Loki can _feel_ the head, huge and stretching him open and he hates everything, next time he will let them cut him open, as barbaric as it is.

"Very good," Tony shakily echoes the doctor's words, "you're do-"

Loki interrupts him with a loud yell, throwing his head back and pushing with all his might. Tony groans in his ear just as Loki feels the head almost, almost-

"Keep pushing," Dr. Miller orders sharply.

"I am bloody-" Loki screeches, then his air runs out and he gasps for breath as pressure and pain wane at the same time.

"Next one," Dr. Miller says.

Tony whimpers. "I think you broke my hand."

"I am going to break your _everything_ if you don't quit your whining," Loki snaps breathlessly. "Who of the two of us is in worse pain?"

"You," Tony immediately says, the swiftness of the reply the only reason Loki refrains from metaphorically biting his head off.

"I will-"

"Stop speaking and take a deep breath," Dr. Miller interrupts.

Loki grinds his teeth and decides that she is the one whose head he will bite off – after this contraction is over, that is. He tries to breathe calmly, which is not at all easy through the pain, then pushes, and then suddenly Dr. Miller takes an about turn and her "push" commands turn into "don't push, don't push, stop pushing". Loki would have something to say about it but he needs whatever breath he can catch to shriek as he finally feels the head come out.

"Here we go," Dr. Miller says, "one more push and that's it. Take a deep breath, there we go."

Loki hates her and her patronizing tone of voice, absolutely abhors it. He's going to kill her as soon as he is done here. Decapitate her. With a butter knife, the most ridiculous invention Midgard has presented to him so far, and that is certainly saying something. He will use it to dig her spine out.

"Oh god," Tony whimpers.

"I loathe you," Loki grits out. After all this Tony better abide to his every whim for at least a week – at the _very least_.

"Well done," Dr. Millers says calmly. "One more push, come on."

Loki pushes, going a little lightheaded with it, and he doesn't even really feel the body come out but the next moment the doctor puts a squirming baby on his chest. "There we go," she says, "baby number one, congratulations, it's a girl."

"Baby number one" screeches with displeasure; Loki puts one hand on the tiny body and shushes. "Blanket," he demands sharply, because honestly, she's getting cold, doesn't anybody have some compassion in this bloody place?

Somebody obediently hands a blanket over; Tony takes it and puts it on their daughter, delicately tucking her in. She squirms, still voicing her displeasure but she calms while Loki murmurs to her soothingly, running his hand down her curled body. She's so small, smaller than any of his other children.

And there goes another contraction; despite knowing he shouldn't, Loki holds his breath. He's not going to yell while his baby is lying on his chest, just calming down from the stress of being born.

"Very good," somebody soothes, and then they clamp off the baby's umbilical cord and hold out a pair of scissors. "Who wants to cut it?"

"Well," Tony says, glancing at Loki.

Rolling his eyes, Loki gestures weakly and watches as Tony cuts it. The baby squirms as the blanket is lifted but settles when they tuck it back into place. She seems to have mostly calmed down, might even be falling asleep, small head resting right above Loki's heart. Loki keeps one hand on her back while Tony almost tentatively pats her head, using a corner of the blanket to clean her face a little.

"Loki!"

Taking his eyes off his baby, Loki glares down his body where Dr. Miller is still positioned between his legs. From her tone of voice Loki gathers that this is not the first time she called his name, or at least he hopes so for her because generally people are not allowed to take that tone of voice with him, even if they are helping his children to be born.

"Are you still feeling contractions?" she asks.

Loki frowns. "I abhor you," he says. "Yes."

She seems amused. _Amused_. Once upon a time a person _trembled_ when he glared at them like that. "Tony should probably take her because you'll be distracted in a moment."

"What?" Tony says weakly. "But what if I drop her?"

"Then I will hollow your chest out with a rusty spoon," Loki tells him, because he feels another contraction coming on and does not have the time or forbearance to coddle Tony. They have practiced this, they know Tony can do it so he better get over this unnecessary onset of nerves quickly because they do not have the time (nor inclination, on Loki’s part) to indulge them.

Tony swallows noisily, Loki can hear it even as he breathes through the pain, and that stupid doctor is still telling him to push, he bloody got the point of it by now. Once it ebbs away enough for him to be able to move again he folds his daughter up in the blanket and hands her over to Tony; she starts whimpering immediately once removed from her comfortable space but Loki cannot pay any more attention, as much as he would like to, because he has another baby coming that really didn't give him much time to prepare. Already he feels the head almost coming out and now he has no hand to squeeze. Except he suddenly does, somebody taking his flailing hand; a stranger. Perhaps they do have some compassion in this place after all. Loki squeezes and grinds his teeth, tries not to scream so as not to disturb his daughter but the effort proves futile; the pain is excruciating and that imbecilic doctor keeps telling him to push, as if he might be tempted or even capable of pulling instead. He pushes, and screams, and decides that this is his most painful birth of them all, this is all Tony's fault and his stupid ability to make Loki have twins without having planned to at all.

"Here's the head," Dr. Millers says, "well done."

"I _noticed_ ," Loki hisses.

"You're doing great," Tony says, as if he has any idea at all what he is talking about.

"We will see how great you do when you give birth," Loki grinds out.

"Oh, god," Tony says. He says something else but Loki can't hear, their second daughter's loud shriek droning him out. Dr. Miller puts her on Loki's chest and somebody immediately follows with a blanket, and for a moment Loki is thoroughly distracted from anything else. She is as tiny as their first daughter, and as noisy. And, like their firstborn, she calms down when Loki murmurs to her soothingly and rubs her back.

The upset cadence of Tony's voice draws Loki's attention away from the baby on his chest. A woman in scrubs is standing in front of him with the apparent intention of taking their daughter.

"Mr. Stark, we need to make sure she's healthy," she says patiently.

"Tony," Loki involves himself, "don't be silly. Follow her and watch like a hawk but let her ensure our daughter is fine. I thought you trust Midgardian medicine?"

After that Tony doesn't have a choice but do what Loki says; they had had some arguments at first about whether or not magic is superior to medicine. It of course is, but Loki has conceded that Midgardian medicine might not be entirely useless, considering its rate of successfulness.

Loki remains behind, cradling his youngest daughter close. The afterbirth slips out with the last of the contractions, making him wince, and then he cuts her umbilical cord. He gets to stare at her tiny dark head a little longer before Tony returns with their first daughter clean and dressed, looking incredibly proud. "Five pounds ten ounces and eighteen inches long," he reports, then his face does something weird, goes all wobbly when he sees the second baby. "Hey," he coos, pulling the blanket down to peer at her head.

"Her turn," the woman says, attempting to reach out for their second daughter. Tony's protesting noise cuts her off and she sighs; apparently Tony has been quite obnoxious. Loki fully approves, for that means she is less likely to make any mistakes.

"Swap?" Tony suggests gently, offering their daughter. Loki sighs regretfully but nods, lets them transfer daughters.

"June," Tony says quietly. They had picked names beforehand and it matters little who gets which.

"June," Loki repeats, cradling her to his chest. She is wrapped in a new blanket and the clothes she is wearing are not the ones they bought but they seem sufficient enough, shirt and playsuit and a little hat, all in varying shades of white and pale yellow.

The woman clears her throat and Tony scowls, but hands their second daughter – Lily – over, following them immediately after kissing Loki's cheek.

"You're doing good," Dr. Miller says, covering Loki's legs with a sheet. "No tears, which is a minor miracle, considering. It's also quite amazing that you barely needed any pain relief."

It had been the main worry that Loki would be in unbearable pain and they wouldn't be able to give him anything to help. He had breathed the relieving gas a couple of times, but it had been okay – agonizing, but not unbearably so. Still, next time he is going to make an effort to get the herbs required for the tea he drank during his other labors before he cannot use his magic anymore.

"As discussed, you need to…" Dr. Miller starts but Loki stops paying attention; as she said, they have discussed this before. Loki is supposed to stay on bed rest for a while, they might keep the twins in neonatal care – but considering how healthy they both seem Loki is not likely going to allow that – he needs to take it easy. He has given birth before, he knows how much his body can bear, and he certainly is not the type to push himself, at least not where this is concerned.

He adjusts his hold on their daughter and pulls the flimsy hospital shirt out of the way, puts her on his chest with her mouth on a nipple. Immediately she opens up and searches; it takes them a couple of tries before she successfully latches on and even then she slips off several times before she manages to properly suck. He only stops paying attention exclusively to her once Tony and Lily return, their second daughter bathed and dressed as well and clearly displeased with the treatment, still whimpering unhappily. "Five pound seven and eighteen inches long as well," he reports dutifully with a proud smile bordering on giddy. "I helped bathe her. Both of them." He leans in, eyes June's lazy feeding curiously. "How is she doing?"

"Good, as you can see," Loki replies. Now that the last of the pain is waning his alertness fades as well, making room for exhaustion. He shifts June so she lies only in one arm and there is enough room for Lily, then raises an eyebrow at Tony. With a small pout Tony hands her over, helping arrange her in Loki's arms, half on top of her sister, and then helps her latch on.

Tony watches as their daughters feed, a decidedly besotted expression on his face. "I can't believe they're really here."

"It will be very difficult finding a quiet moment from now on so you will not need belief for much longer," Loki replies, but his smile belies the nature of his words.

Tony hums in agreement and leans in, nuzzling Loki's face. "You did well. You're amazing."

Loki nods because this was anything but easy and he certainly deserves the praise. He tilts his face in a clear request for a kiss and gets it, Tony brushing their lips against each other tenderly. "I love you."

Loki smiles, delighted. This is really not something they say often but if any time is appropriate, this is it. "I love you too."

They watch their daughters for a while; Tony can't seem to be able to keep his hands off them, repeatedly adjusting the blankets or touching their hands balled into tiny fists. They're in the process of falling asleep, only suckling lazily anymore, and Loki's arms are getting tired so he decides to pull them off. A nurse who stayed behind in the room once most people left after the clean-up steps forwards, pushing a twin cot along, and they settle the babies inside despite Tony's reluctance to let them go.

"We have a room ready for you," the nurse informs them and starts to push Loki's bed, Tony following with the twins. Waiting in Loki's room is another nurse and they help Loki into the tiny bathroom to bathe, wash the blood and sweat off him while Tony hovers in the doorway, half watching the proceedings and half guarding the twins. Once Loki is clean he feels considerably better, despite the fact that he has to wear scrubs again instead of the clothes he packed for himself in his hospital bag. At least this time they are proper clothes that aren't open for easy access, and the new bed he is put into is more comfortable as well. He is asked whether there is anything he needs, informed which button to press should he require anything and receives and declines the offer of having a lactation consultant meeting with him. A pediatrician will check in with them soon, as will his doctor, and then he and Tony are finally left alone.

"Is there anything you need?" Tony asks, brushing the freshly washed hair out of Loki's face.

"A pizza," Loki says immediately. He's _ravenous_.

Tony laughs and leans in for a kiss. "Anything you want."


End file.
